Assassin's Creed: Revelations User Review

The epic began with the stoic Altair Ibn La-Ahad, then shifted to the story of the brash nobleman Ezio Auditore.

Now, it ends.

Revelations begins with protagonist Desmond Miles awakening in a strange area of the Animus, known only as "the Black Room." It is here he discovers that in order to save his life, and the world, he must journey once more into the memories of his ancestors and bridge separate the anomalies that are causing him to lose his mind.

Enter Ezio Auditore, Master Italian Assassin and revered member of the Assassin order, now much older, wiser, and deadlier. He is on his way to find a vault hidden by Altair at Masyaf fortress when he is ambushed by a rogue Templar group and subsequently left for dead.

After a brief scuffle, you overpower the group and their leader and discover that the keys to opening Altair's vault are hidden in Constantinople.

Ezio journeys to the Turkish city and encounters his fair share of conspiracies, Assassins, Templars, and treasure, and even finds a new love interest along the way.

Sound enticing yet? Play the game to experience the rest of the story!

--------

Let's go over the aspects of the game.

Graphics-wise, Revelations is downright gorgeous. From the Hagia Sophia to the dark caves of Cappadocia, the game truly takes out all the stops in producing beautifully-rendered settings and landscapes. Textures are spot-on, and fabrics move appropriately in the breeze. The only graphics didn't get a perfect 10 was because of the occasional screen-tear I experienced during some missions, and the occasional hiccup in texture. Otherwise, absolutely beautiful. I sometimes stopped to just take in the surroundings.

Gameplay is solid. Nothing truly innovative here, except for the new hookblade combat. I found it a little frustrating at times, but BOY is it fun to trip people without skipping a beat. The Hookblade also improves climbing speed by about 30% (or so Ubisoft says) and it's true to some extent; climbing buildings was much faster since Ezio could skip a few handholds at once by pulling himself upward, but I found the Hookblade to glitch at times and keep me from ascending a building quickly.Swordplay is robust as well; using heavier grants the player some brutal finishing moves: one of them has Ezio stabbing his sword through a guard's face and out the back of his head, then slamming the hilt so the guy's head does a full 360. He then pulls the sword out in a mess of blood and gore. Smaller weapons grant cleaner kills, but quicker combat.

Sound is excellent, as Jesper Kyd and Lorne Balfe prove to us in the game's soundtrack, which features mesmerizing sitar chords, booming drum beats, and fast-paced cultural muzak. Assassin's Creed fans will enjoy the soundtrack immensely as it expands on the world Jesper has built over the past games. Lorne adds some new flavors that are most welcome, and the textures he brings give it a fresher feel. While Jesper Kyd is totally capable of handling the franchise on his own I'm always in the mindset of "the more the merrier".

Replay value holds its own with multiplayer, first introduced in Brotherhood. I must say, I've become addicted to Revelations' multiplayer as it offered a radically different experience from your typical FPS like COD or Battlefield. The revelations multiplayer only adds to the greatness. New game modes like Deathmatch and Artifact Assault add an exhilarating new touch to your more typical game modes. Deathmatch puts you in a very close, tight section of a map with NO compass. You are only given a picture of your target and it is up to you to do the rest. Artifact Assault is a basic Capture the Flag mode. It works like this: Once you cross the "halfway" point of the map you will only be able to stun, thus you must constantly be on your toes in your attempt to get the flag/artifact and be weary of defenders hiding in crowds near the the flag or what not. Customization plays an even bigger role. New characters can be customized endlessly with different types of weapons, belts, cloths, and you can even unlock gold weapons. You can also put emblems on the back of your cape. The are 50 ranks, but unlike Brotherhood where 50 is the level cap, you can now Prestige. But get this...You don't lose anything! You keep unlocking more stuff, and here's the kicker: you can do this 99 times. And Ubisoft says you still unlock stuff right up to Prestige lvl. 99. Just wow.

All in all, Revelations is an epic conclusion to Ezio's and Altair's tale, with a robust multiplayer and cinematic campaign, there's no way anyone won't enjoy this game. Pick it up today and embrace the Creed!